Hlastradamus rides again, and picks Iowa and ISU to cover the spread in Week 1

It's been a busy off-season for Hlastradamus. He won an Olympic gold medal in synchronized swimming, he won a Tony award, and he got to make S'mores one night at a campground in Zanesville, Ohio.

But now it's time to get back into the prophet business. College football is upon us, and the sage is prepared to once again deliver the goods.

Iowa -10 vs. Northern Illinois. When Hlastradamus hears a lot of people wondering why a number is so high, he likes to go with the rising tide.

This isn't last year's Northern Illinois, which went 11-3. Iowa is well ahead of NIU in quarterbacking, with James Vandenberg over Jordan Lynch. NIU's offensive line is as green as Iowa's defensive line, so this is a good game for the Hawkeyes' defense to get its feet wet.

Iowa State +1.5 vs. Tulsa. We know Tulsa is a good program. It's 44-22 over the last five seasons, with three bowl wins. But it was 0-5 against the Big 12 in that time.

This game is at Ames. The Cyclones have a better program than Nevada bettors realize. And ISU was 5-0 last season in games decided by four points or less, or that went to overtime.

Michigan State -7 vs. Boise State. Hlastradamus respects Boise State. He knows the Broncos opened the last three seasons with wins over Oregon, Virginia Tech and Georgia.

He likes the Spartans, anyhow.

Michigan +14 vs. Alabama.

Fourteen points. Repeat, 14 points.

If Bama beats the Sugar Bowl-champion Wolverines by more than 14 points, well, hey, the Big Ten looks like it will be loaded in men's basketball this year.